Battle Royal: The Insidious Effects of Racism

Battle Royal: Ralph Ellison

Sample Paper in MLA Format

I was asked to post a sample paper. Here is one from the OWL at Purdue. Click on the link below.
Sample Paper in MLA Format

Deadline Changes

Photo credit: http://vanilla105.deviantart.com/art/Snow-Storm-84995990

Due to the snow/ice closure, I am changing our deadlines. Both the research draft and the Shipping News projects will be due on Tuesday. The test over Shipping News will also be on Tuesday. This will allow for some last minute questions and some review for the test, which I had planned to do today. If you have some pressing questions over the weekend, please email me. I will get back to you as soon as possible.

You're welcome.

Also, I have added some helpful links regarding thesis statements and citing sources on the right side of the blog page.

Sandwich Examples from Class

As promised, here are the examples of sandwiching your source material. I have made the corrections we talked about in class so that you will have solid examples to work with. 

Recently, the idea of teaching students to distract armed suspects has become a controversial issue. The students would be taught to distract and confuse armed suspects by throwing things and attacking them (“National School Safety”). This could prove to be very unsafe.

Many proposals have been made to protect students in a time of crisis. One says that students should be trained to “try to ‘distract’ and ‘confuse’ armed suspects” (“National School Safety”). People have gone into such a frenzy over the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting that they come up with crazy ideas that even the people who were affected by the tragedy don’t like.

With the increase in school attacks, many ideas have been proposed to try to deal with the attacks while they are happening:

                The controversial issues…

                …school settings. ("National School Safety")

Advocates believe that these actions could slow down the attackers until law enforcement arrives.

Though some suggest a possible solution to school safety would be to encourage students to attack a suspect, it is not a popular theory: “Many educators, law enforcement officers, parents and school safety specialists do not support this proposed approach for 'training' students in preK-12 school settings” (“National School Safety”). Because of this, it is unlikely to be implemented.

Sandwiching Sources

Photo courtesy: http://uwbwritingcenter.files.wordpress.com/2011/05/sandwich.jpg

As promised, here are the examples we worked on in class. Revisit them as you are writing your own paper. You want to use a variety of techniques in your paper, so make sure you mix it up. 

"Teachers Don’t Want to Carry Guns in the Classroom, Poll Says." The Washingtion Times. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Feb. 2013.

A survey by the National Education Association, a labor union representing about 3 million educators, found that only 22 percent of teachers “favor a proposal to allow teachers or other school employees to receive firearms training and allow them to carry firearms in schools.”

Nearly 70 percent oppose it, including 61 percent who said they strongly disagree with the idea, which has been floated by Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and others who believe armed school personnel could reduce the risk of shootings or other violent events.

But the poll does show strong support for background checks and other measures.

More than three-fourths of teachers said they favor a ban on assault weapons, and 69 percent favor a ban on high-capacity clips. Both ideas have been floated by Democrats and gun-control activists in the weeks since the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

Recently, the National Education Association (NEA) polled its member teachers about guns in schools and other gun control legislation. The survey provided some interesting results:

A survey by the National Education Association, a labor union representing about 3 million educators, found that only 22 percent of teachers “favor a proposal to allow teachers or other school employees to receive firearms training and allow them to carry firearms in schools.” Nearly 70 percent oppose it, including 61 percent who said they strongly disagree with the idea, which has been floated by Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and others who believe armed school personnel could reduce the risk of shootings or other violent events. But the poll does show strong support for background checks and other measures. More than three-fourths of teachers said they favor a ban on assault weapons, and 69 percent favor a ban on high-capacity clips. Both ideas have been floated by Democrats and gun-control activists in the weeks since the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. (“Teachers Don’t Want to Carry Guns”)

Since the Sandy Hook shooting, these teachers have a powerful voice that legislators are listening to, so this survey could help defeat legislation allowing teachers to carry weapons at school.

Recently, the National Education Association (NEA) polled its member teachers and found some interesting information: “Nearly 70 percent oppose [teacher-carry legislation], including 61 percent who said they strongly disagree with the idea, which has been floated by Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and others who believe armed school personnel could reduce the risk of shootings or other violent events” (“Teachers Don’t Want to Carry Guns”).  Since the Sandy Hook shooting, these teachers have a powerful voice that legislators are listening to, so this survey could help defeat legislation allowing teachers to carry weapons at school.

Recently, the National Education Association (NEA) polled its member teachers about guns in schools and other gun control legislation. “Nearly 70 percent oppose [teacher-carry legislation], including 61 percent who said they strongly disagree with the idea, which has been floated by Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and others who believe armed school personnel could reduce the risk of shootings or other violent events” (“Teachers Don’t Want to Carry Guns”).  Since the Sandy Hook shooting, these teachers have a powerful voice that legislators are listening to, so this survey could help defeat legislation allowing teachers to carry weapons at school.

Recently, the National Education Association (NEA) polled its member teachers about guns in schools and other gun control legislation. One result of interest in that survey was that “69 percent favor a ban on high-capacity clips” (“Teachers Don’t Want to Carry Guns”). Since the Sandy Hook shooting, these teachers have a powerful voice that legislators are listening to, so this survey could lead to legislation banning these types of clips.